It had been two days since Kuroko received the phone call from Aomine informing him that Akashi was missing. Kise had been staying with Kuroko to keep him company ever since. Aomine had also been working overtime in a desperate attempt to locate his friend.
Kuroko, on the other hand, felt numb. He didn't feel like he was in possession of his own body. It was as if somebody else was living his life for him.
Kise was currently on the phone. Kuroko couldn't hear what he was saying, opting instead to stare out of the window blankly. He could feel that Akashi was still alive, but only barely. Hopes that Akashi would ever be located were diminishing as each hour went by. If Akashi died, Kuroko didn't think he would be able to take it.
"Kurokocchi!" Kise shrieked, bounding towards the blue-haired man. "They found Akashicchi! Let's go!"
Kuroko's head shot up. The life that had seemingly left him immediately returned. Kuroko stood up breathlessly. "What?! Where are we going?!"
"To the hospital!" said Kise.
Kuroko's eyes widened in worry. "Is Seijuurou-kun alright?"
"I don't know," replied Kise, his forehead wrinkling slightly. "Daikicchi said something about Akashicchi being buried underneath landslide debris, lack of air or something like that," he said. "But Kurokocchi, what's important is that he's alive! A bit worse for wear, but he's alive!"
Kuroko nodded slowly. Yes, Kise was right – all that mattered right now was that Akashi was not dead.
"Come on!" Kise grabbed Kuroko's hand and together, they ran out of Kuroko's apartment. Kuroko didn't even have time to lock the door.
When Kise and Kuroko reached the hospital, they were directed by the head nurse on duty to the operation theatre on the 7th floor. As soon as Kuroko heard the phrase "operation theatre", his anxiety levels went through the roof.
"Don't worry, Kurokocchi," Kise assured a fidgeting Kuroko while in the lift, placing a hand comfortingly on Kuroko's back. "I'm sure everything's alright. The doctor will enlighten us about Akashicchi's situation."
The lift doors slid open. Kuroko rushed out, with Kise trailing not far behind him.
Kuroko sprinted down the hallway leading to the operating theatre. He almost crashed into a doctor passing by.
Kuroko skidded to a halt when he reached the operation theatre. The red light above the door was alight, indicating that the surgery was still in progress. There was nobody outside, so there was no one who could elucidate Akashi's condition for Kuroko. All he could do was wait for the surgery to be over.
Kuroko jerked when Kise tapped him on his shoulder. "Kise-kun!" he gasped.
"Relax, Kurokocchi," said Kise. "Don't stress yourself out too much. Akashicchi is alive, and the surgeon is in there making sure he stays alive."
"Yeah." Kuroko exhaled loudly. "Yeah, you're right. I should have faith in the surgeon."
"Yes," Kise agreed. "Daikicchi and Nijimura-san are on their way from the police station. Daikicchi said they left ten minutes ago, so they should be here soon if there's no traffic."
Kuroko nodded silently.
"Why don't we go sit down? We don't know how long the operation is going to take."
Kuroko nodded again, and allowed Kise to take him to the row of chairs lined up against the wall opposite the operation theatre.
"You want to drink anything, Kurokocchi?"
"I think… I think I'm too nervous to drink anything right now."
Kise pressed his lips together. He placed his hand on Kuroko's lap and rubbed it lightly.
Suddenly, a young doctor burst out of the operating theatre. She looked flustered and in a hurry.
Kuroko immediately got to his feet and dashed over to the operation theatre doors, in hopes that he could get a peek inside. But the doors were firmly closed.
When the doctor returned shortly after, she was wheeling a defibrillator crash cart with her.
"Excuse me," Kuroko called out to the doctor, stopping her in her tracks. "But what is going on in there?"
"The patient's crashing!" the doctor exclaimed. Then, her expression turned into a terrified one. "Please don't ask me anymore questions – I'm just an intern!" It was clear that she didn't want to be held responsible for the break-down of a patient's loved one.
As the intern disappeared into the operating theatre, Kuroko's heart was racing in panic. Crashing meant that Akashi's heart was failing, right? It meant that Akashi's heart had stopped beating, right?
Kuroko's breathing was starting to become erratic.
"Kurokocchi," Kise murmured, placing his hands gently on Kuroko's shoulders. While Kuroko was talking to the intern, Kise had made his way over to where Kuroko was standing. "Kurokocchi, you need to calm down."
"I can't," gasped Kuroko. A tear leaked out from his eye. "I can't. Seijuurou-kun is dying!"
"No," Kise said firmly. He whirled Kuroko around so that the two of them were facing each other. "Akashicchi is not dying for sure. They are doing all that they can in there to keep him alive. Until Akashicchi flatlines, there is still hope that he will survive."
Kuroko nodded weakly. He collapsed into the taller man's chest, burying his face into it. Kuroko felt it when Kise wrapped his arms around his smaller frame as a gesture of comfort, and he silently thanked Aomine for making sure that he wasn't alone at this time. Kuroko didn't know how he would have coped if he was by himself.
Kise and Kuroko spent quite some time in that position, but eventually, Kise looked up. He was just in time to see the red light above the operation theatre door go off. "Hey, Kurokocchi," he said, giving Kuroko a slight nudge. "The surgery is over."
Kuroko wrenched himself apart from Kise. He hastened over to the front of the operation theatre doors as Kise followed closely behind him.
A friendly middle-aged doctor came through the doors. He had a pleasant smile on his face, and instantly, Kuroko felt comforted by his presence. "Phew," the doctor heaved a sigh of release. "That was quite a scare we had. I'm assuming you gentlemen are here for Akashi-san?"
"Yes," Kise and Kuroko replied simultaneously.
"Is he alright?" asked Kuroko anxiously.
"Well, Akashi-san is suffering from mild hypoxemia from being buried underneath a lot of earth and dirt. Basically, there wasn't enough oxygen and he was looking rather blue when he was admitted. That was part of the reason he crashed in there," the doctor explained.
Kuroko swallowed thickly. "But he's alright now?"
The doctor chuckled and patted Kuroko's right upper arm kindly. "Yes. I've managed to get his heart beating again, and there is no longer any cause for worry."
Kuroko's whole body relaxed. He slumped forward in relief. "Oh, thank god."
"So I've remedied the hypoxemia by giving Akashi-san a ventilation mask – it basically pumps oxygen into his body through his nose and mouth, so it should not be removed for at least 12 hours," the doctor continued speaking.
"Okay," replied Kuroko. "Noted."
"Akashi-san also has a bullet wound on his stomach, but it was cauterised rather crudely. I assume he did it himself to stop the bleeding. I've removed the bullet and stitched it up properly, but the cauterisation is going to leave a scar. Also, I've placed him on intravenous antibiotics – infection is always a concern when you cauterise a wound, so that is just a precaution."
"Can I see him?" asked Kuroko.
"Well…" The doctor glanced behind at the doors. "The surgical staffs are still prepping Akashi-san to be sent to the ward. I don't know how long that will take, so I suggest you grab some food from the cafeteria, and when you're done, he'll be in room 815."
"Thank you, sensei," said Kuroko, bowing deeply. "Thank you very much for saving my mate's life."
"Not a problem at all – I came into this profession to save lives," replied the doctor with a smile. "Anyway, I don't expect Akashi-san to be awake for a while, but when he wakes up, just let a nurse know and she'll page me. I'll come and check in on him then."
When the doctor walked away, Kise turned to Kuroko. "See? Akashicchi is going to be okay!"
Kuroko heaved a sigh of relief. "Yeah."
Aomine and Kise tried to keep Kuroko in the cafeteria for as long as possible. It seemed like they wanted to spare Kuroko from seeing Akashi in such a pitiful state.
Kuroko made his way to Akashi's ward alone. He claimed that he wanted some time to himself, so Aomine and Kise granted him that request by leaving to go home (even though Kise was a little apprehensive about leaving Kuroko alone). Kuroko promised to call them when Akashi came into consciousness, and they would come and visit then.
Nijimura, on the other hand, wanted to hear first-hand from the doctor regarding Akashi's condition. After that, he had to return to the office. He told Kuroko that Akashi could have time off work to recover and that he would drop by later, when Akashi was responsive and lucid.
Kuroko opened the door to Akashi's room. He slipped in and closed the door quietly.
Akashi was prone on the bed. Considering the doctor said that he looked rather blue when he was admitted to the hospital, the colour of Akashi's skin was better. He was still a bit blue, but there was a pinkish tinge, indicating that the ventilation mask that was providing oxygen to his body was doing its job.
Kuroko pushed a chair nearer towards Akashi's bedside and sat down on it.
Kuroko gazed at Akashi. It was so strange to see Akashi, a powerful Sentinel, lying on a hospital bed with a mask over his face and looking like he was at death's door. But nevertheless, Kuroko was glad that Akashi was now out of harm's way.
Kuroko didn't know how he survived the past two days, not knowing if Akashi would live. Granted, he could feel Akashi through their bond, but that didn't provide Kuroko with the reassurance that seeing and touching Akashi for himself did.
Kuroko reached forward to run his fingers through Akashi's hair. "I missed you, Seijuurou-kun," he murmured. "Wake up soon, okay?"
The only sound that could be heard was the soft buzzing from the oxygen tank connected to Akashi's ventilation mask.
